Automatic garage-door operator



Jan. 22 1924.

A. H. GENEST- AUTOMATIC GARAGE DOOR OPERATOR Filed April 25 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEY Patented-Jan. 22, 1924.

UNITED STATES I ALEXANDER H.'GENEST, OF CHESHIRE. CONNECTICUT.

AUTOMATIC GARAGE-DOOR OPERATOR.

Application filed April 25, 1922. Serial No. 556,475.

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER H. GEN s'r,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Cheshire, county of New Haven, and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Garage-Door Operators, of which the following is a specification. V

This invention relates to door or gate operators and more particularly to means whereby the door or doors of a garage will be automatically opened and shut. 7

One object of the invention is to provide a device of this nature in which the-door or doors of a garage will be opened when the weight of a motor car is thrown on a controlling element as the car approaches the door-way from either direction.v I

A further object is to provide a device of this nature in which thedoor or doors will be closed automatically upon the release of the controlling element when thecar has passed completely thereover. {I

With these and other objects in view, there has been illustrated in the accompanying drawing one form in which the invention may be conveniently embodied in practice.

Fig. l is a perspective View showing the invention applied to the frame-work and approach of a garage.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the structure shown in- Fig. l, the base being shown in section. V A

Fig. 3 is a sectional side view of the approach' showing one of the pivotedtracks in its normal position with the adjacent door locked.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but showing the pivoted track in depressed position and the adjacent door unlocked and in open position.

Referring now to the drawings in which like reference numerals denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 10 represents a floor of suitable construction forming part of a garage, the latter also comprising corner posts 11 connected at their tops by'bars 12, forming a rectangular frame. A doorway is formed at the front of the garage by door posts 13, extending from the floor to the front bar 12, and a bar 14 connecting the posts 13 below the front bar 12.

To close the doorway, provision is made of two doors 15, 15, mounted on the corre sponding door posts'13, 13, by hinges 16,v

so as to open outwardly. Each of these doors is urged outwardly by a helical torsion spring 17, the latter being secured at one end to the door 15 and at the other end to the adjoining post 13. To look each of the doors 15 in closed position, provision is made ofa bolt 18 slidably mounted in the floor and urged upwardly by a spring 19 to enter a recess or socket 20 in the lower edge of the door. 7

At the top of the doorway, each door is lock d by a bolt 21 slidably mounted in the bar 4 and urged downwardly by a spring 22 to enter a socket 23 in the upper edge of the door.

The floor 10 is extended beyond the front of the garage to form an approach 24. The

fioor 10 is also provided with a pair of parallel gr oves or recesses 25, 25, to receive movable tracks 26 supported at their outer ends on pivots 27. These tracks normally are preferably substantially flush with the upper surface of the floor 10. Projecting downwardly from each of the tracks 26 is a vertical reinforcing strip or rib 28 which gradually de reases in depth away from the pivoted end of the track. I

When in depressed position, each track is supported by its rib 28 which rests on the bot tom of the corresponding recess25. The dimensions of the apparatus may be varied in accordance with the size of car, and other conditions. For example, in one installation,v

the tracks 26 are about eleven feet long, and

- when a motor car. was resting upon them, .the tracks were depressed about two inches.

As clearly shown in F ig. 1, the tracks 26 extend a substantial distance within the gap rage so that theymaybe depressed by the cart as thelatter approaches the doors from the inside.

To enable the car to pass smoothly from the tracks to the floor and vice versa, at the inside of the garage, a pair of inclined portions 28 are formed in the floor adjacent the inner ends of the recesses 25.

The tracks 26 are normally supported by a cross bar 29 of suitable material, such as iron. The cross bar 29 passes through slots in the ribs 28, and is connected by pins 30 with the bolts 18. At its ends, the bar 29 is connected with vertical rods 31 pivoted at their upper ends to the outer ends of levers Provision is also.- made for holding the:-

traoks 26 in raised position andfor closing the doors 15 when the car'runsoff;eitherend of the tracks. To this end, a lever 34: at each side of the doorway is mounted on a pivot 35 supported at one end by a bracket 36;, on the cornerpost 11, and at the other end on a-braclret 36 carried by the door post 1 3; The short front arm of the' lever-3 ispivotall y-connect ed with the rod" 31, previously described; and the; long-rear arm is inclined downwardlyat a; considerable angle. A rope or'other flexible member 37 is attached to the rear end of the lever and passes through and 'iscon'nected with an eye 38 secured to-a counterhalanc'e or weight 392 The rope 37*then passesupwardly to, and over apulley IO secured to the bar 12 at that side of the frame. The rope37 is then brought forward and across the garage and secured to an eye or staple 41% on the-inner face-of the door 15 on the other side'of the garage;

In operation, when the tracksare de pr essedby a car", the rods 31 are drawn down Wardly and swing the levers 345 about their pivots against the action of'the weights 39. It" wil l b'e observed that, due to the difference in length of the arms of each oft-he levers 34;, the slight downward movement of the forward end of the lever will causea consid'era-ble upward movement ofthe rearend thereof. The downward movement ofthe rods 31= having been accompanied by the withdrawal of the-bolts'lS-and 21, the doors 15 will now be swungto theiropen or di'ottedli ne positlions, asshown in Fig. 1.

Upon release of" the tracks 10 from the weight; of t'he car, the tracks and thebolts 18 and 21 will be restored: to their normatpositions, and the weights39 will close the d oors to which they are=connected,'t he doors 15' then being locked inclosed position by the bolts 18 and 21. In order toinsure the return of-the' doors 15 to closed position eclges of the doors may b'e-so shaped-that,'i f{ necessary, the bolts may be pressed back by thedeors in movingto closed position, and

then permitted to snap into the correspond ing sockets.

. Amy-desired.- additionalmea-ns may be provided to lock the doors shut afterthecar has gone into the garage or has left on a trip. Ordinaeily,--however, such additional looking means willbe unnecessary as the bolts 18 and 21'wi'llijsecurely hold the doors in closed position.

While there has: been disclosed in this specification one form in which the invention may be embodied, it is to be understood that thi's formis' shown for the purpose of illustration only, and that the inventionis not to beliinited 'to the specific disclosure but may be modified and" embodied invarious other forms without departing from its spirit. In short,- the invention includes alltl1e;m0difica tions and embodiments coming within the scope of the} following claims.-

' Having thus fully described the invention, wh'at' is claimed-as new, and forwhich it is desired tosecure Letters Patent, is

1. In a garage-door operating mechanism, a door, means to urgethe door-to open position, ine'ansto releasably hold the door in closed position, vehicle-actuated mechanism for releasing said holding means, a weight connected to-said door for urging it: to-closed posit-ion, vehicle-operatedmeans for raising said weight to permit said door to open,saidweight-raising means-being connected'to said releasing mechanism whereby said weight will not only serve toclOse said door when thefvehicle has left its actuating position, but will also serve to restoresaid doonholch ing means toholding position.

2. In a'ga-rage-door operating mechanism, a pair of doors, means to urge said doors to open position, means to releasably hold the doors in closed position, a pair of levers connected to said holding means, vehicle-actuated means connected to said levers to; release said holding means, a pair of weights connectedto said doors for urging them to closed position, a pair of levers rigidl y connected to said vehicle-actuated means and loosely connected to I said weights, said weights being adaptz'ad tobe raised by said vehicle' actuated. inea ns' to releasejsaid doors, and said vehicle-actuated means'being adapted to be restored to original position by said weights when the vehicle has left its actuatnig POSltlOl].

In testimony whereof, Ihave attired? my signature tothis specification.

ALEXANDER i-i. ennnsi. 

